Phil Jurkovec will start Saturday night in Pitt’s game at Virginia Tech, according to ESPN college football reporter Pete Thamel, who cited an ESPN source. Pitt is trying to stop its first three-game losing streak since 2020.
When he met with reporters Thursday, coach Pat Narduzzi declined to reveal the identity of his starter, recognizing that there is a similar question surrounding Virginia Tech quarterbacks Kyron Drones and the injured starter Grant Wells. But Drones is expected to start.
“We don’t know who (Virginia Tech’s) starting quarterback is. They aren’t going to know who ours is,” Narduzzi said at the time. But he also said he has “a good idea” who will start between Jurkovec and his No. 1 backup Christian Veilleux.
Jurkovec, a six-year senior, was injured last Saturday night when he was hit by North Carolina cornerback Tayon Holloway, who was penalized for targeting and ejected. A source told Thamel that Jurkovec has a lower-body injury after the illegal hit and a horse-collar tackle.
Before the injury, Jurkovec completed 11 of 15 passes for 109 yards behind an offensive line missing three starters — center Jake Kradel, All-ACC third-team left tackle Matt Goncalves and left guard Ryan Jacoby. Kradel’s status for the Virginia Tech game is uncertain, but Goncalves and Jacoby are out for the season.
In relief, Veilleux completed 7 of 18 passes, with two interceptions and a fumble.
For the season, Jurkovec has completed 46 of 90 passes (51.1%) for 583 yards, four touchdowns and three interceptions.
Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jerry by email at jdipaola@triblive.com or via Twitter .
